Dispenser for toilet seat covers

ABSTRACT

A dispenser for toilet seat covers including a cylindrical roll of discrete sheets arranged in a housing. The sheets are provided with depending tabs so arranged that upon flushing of a toilet bowl, the flushing water automatically removes a used sheet and feeds a new sheet from the housing.

United States Patent [191 Vairo [4s] Aug. 14, 1973 DISPENSER FOR TOILET SEAT COVERS [76] Inventor: Nicola Vairo, 2855 Lafayette Ave.,

Bronx, N.Y. 10465 [22] Filed: Jan. 25, 1971 21 Appl. No.: 109,330

[52] US. Cl 4/247, 269/14, 269/288,

[51] Int. CL... A47k 13/16, A471: 13/22, B23q 3/02 [58] Field of Search 4/247 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,954,139 4/1934 Lundin 4/247 R17,645 4/1930 Barker et a1. 4/247 UX 912,280 2/1909 Brott 4/247 949,562 2/1910 Berger 4/247 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 101,128 9/1923 Switzerland 4/247 16,029 5/1903 Great Britain 1,018,999 10/1952 France 4/247 302,679 11/1932 Italy 4/247 Primary Examiner-Wayne A. Morse, Jr. Assistant ExaminerDona1d B. Massenberg Attorney-Kenneth S. Goldfarb [57] ABSTRACT A dispenser for toilet seat covers including a cylindrical roll of discrete sheets arranged in a housing. The sheets are provided with depending tabs so arranged that upon flushing of a toilet bowl, the flushing water automatically rernoves a used sheet and feeds a new sheet from the housing.

1 Claim, 6 Drawing Figures DISPENSER FOR TOILET SEAT COVERS This invention relates to a dispenser for toilet seat covers in the form of sheets of paper which are so arranged as to overlap each other for automatic dispensing from a housing onto a toilet seat.

An object of the present invention is to provide a toilet seat cover for automatically covering a toilet seat after flushing away of the previous toilet seat cover.

In the past various toilet seat covers have been produced which are dispensed generally in a folded condition and which need to be hand placed upon the toilet seat. Various persons using public toilet facilities have a great desire to protect themselves against dirt, contamination, bacteria, and germs left on toilet seats by the previous user. Heretofore they have used sheets of toilet paper or separately dispensed toilet seat covers which must be manually positioned after having been opened and unfolded.

The present invention overcomes the disadvantages of these prior means for covering a toilet seat by providing for the automatic dispensing of toilet seat covers using the energy of the flushing water for automatically dispensing the next sheet while the used sheet is being discarded and flushed away.

A further object of the present invention resides in the provision of a dispenser for toilet seat covers which employs novel means for maintaining the device in a highly attractive manner while facilitating the removal and replacement of the sheets for forming the toilet seat covers.

Still further objects and features of this invention reside in the provision of a dispenser for toilet seat covers which is simple in construction, sturdy, highly attractive in appearance, and efficient in use.

These, together with the various ancillary objects and features of the present invention, which will become apparent as the following description proceeds, are attained by this dispenser for toilet seat covers, a preferred embodiment of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, by way of example only, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a dispenser for toilet seat covers in accordance with the concepts of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken along the plane of line 2-2 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing the shaft and cylindrical roll of discrete sheets;

FIG- 4 is a schematic illustration of the manner in which the invention is utilized on a toilet bowl and seat;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of one of the discrete sheets; and,

FIG. 6 is a schematic view illustrating the manner in which the sheets are arranged in overlapping relationship with respect to each other.

With continuing reference to the accompanying drawing wherein like reference numerals designate similar parts throughout the various views, reference numeral 10 generally designates the toilet seat cover dispenser according to the present invention. The dispenser includes a housing 11 having a movable lid 12.

The housing 11 is adapted to be secured to a toilet bowl shown schematically in FIG. 4 at by means of a clamp element 13 integral with the housing 11 and having a hollow leg portion 17 adapted to telescopically receive the leg portion 170 of movable clamp element 13a.

A plurality of discrete sheets formed of suitable material similar to toilet tissue or the like and of a generally rectangular shape are wound in overlapping relationship, see FIG. 6, in a cylindrical roll and mounted on a shaft 16 which is rotatably mounted or journalled in the end walls 18 of the housing 11. The end walls 18 are provided with grooves 19 therein for receiving the arcuate lid 12 and the lid 12 is provided with stops 21 for engagement with a shoulder 22 of the grooves 19 formed in the end walls 18.

The housing 11 and lid 12, together with the clamping element 13, are molded in a single integral piece out of any suitable synthetic plastic such as polyvinyl chloride, styrene or the like. The housing 11 may be of any suitable color, or may be white, as may be desired so as to conform to the decor of the toilet bowl 20 and other surrounding fixtures and decorations. The lid 12 has a handle 23 of considerably greater thickness than the material of which the other portions of the lid are molded and therefore is of considerable weight. The handle 23 may be used to move the lid 12 from the position as shown in solid lines in FIG. 2 to the position as shown in dotted lines. The discharge opening 24 formed in the housing 11 is of a greater size than the dimensions of the lid 12 so as to always leave a sufficient space for the sheets 5 to pass out of the housing 11 even when the lid 12 is in a closed position. The handle 23 is of such weight so as to maintain the lid 12 in a closed position in normal use.

Threadedly engaged in legs 25 and 25a of clamping elements 13 and 13a are threaded clamp members 14 and 14a. The size of the clamp assembly may be adjusted by moving the clamp element toward or away from the vertical portions 26 and 26a of the respective clamp elements whereby the toilet bowl may be securely grasped and the threaded clamp members i 14 and 14a engaged so as to lockingly hold the housing 11 in desired position.

The sheets 15 are each provided with U-shaped cuts 28 therein so as to form depending tabs 29 which drop downwardly into the water 30 in the bowl 20. Upon flushing of the bowl 20, the sheet l5"on the toilet seat 31 is automatically removed and flushed and because it is still partially engaged on the roll, as shown in FIG. 6, the next sheet will be automatically discharged through the opening 24 and onto the seat 31 by the pulling action of the flushing fluid on the sheet 15 covering the seat and the frictional engagement by the sheets which will cause the roll 5 to turn. and automatically dispense the next successive sheet 15.

A latitude of modification, change and substitution is intended in the foregoing disclosure, and in some instances some features of the invention will be employed without a corresponding use of other features.

I claim:

A dispenser for toilet seat cat/er; comprising a housing, clamp means for attaching said housing to a toilet bowl, a shaft rotatably mounting in said housing, a plurality of discrete rectangular sheets of a size to cover and overlie a toilet seat, said sheets being cylindrically disposed on said shaft in overlapping relationship, said housing having discharge means for successively feeding said sheets onto said toilet seat, said housing being cylindrical in shape, said housing having end walls, an arcuate lid for closing said discharge means, guide means on said end walls including grooves in said end walls for movably mounting said lid seat and a new sheet fed onto said toilet seat, said clamp means comprising a first clamp element integral with said housing and having a hollow leg portion, and a second clamp element telescopically slidable within said hollow leg portion.

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